Beninese journalist Djobo Bio, who works with FM Nonsina, a community radio station based in Bembéréké, a town in northern Benin (Borgou region), was arrested by the National Police on Saturday, July 26, 2025. He was subsequently detained at the central police station in Parakou, the regional capital.
Bio’s arrest followed the publication of a report on Nonsina’s Facebook page about a house attack that occurred on the night of July 22, 2025 in Diadia, a village located in the Sinendé municipality in north-central Benin. The attack allegedly targeted a herder named Oumarou MAMA and his wife. The two were reportedly beaten by the assailants. Bio is accused by the Court for the Repression of Economic Offences and Terrorism (CRIET) of spreading false information.
The Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) strongly condemns the arrest and detention of Bio for simply reporting on an incident on Facebook. If there was any misconduct in publishing the said content, the media regulator, The High Authority for Audiovisual and Communication (HAAC) should be the right institution to whip the journalist and his media outlet in line.
The MFWA demands for the immediate release of Bio, and urges the authorities to end the criminalisation of press and speech offenses in the country.
